JACOBI, Frank - Friends of Horton Cemetery

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^{b.1882-d.1914}

^{Frank Jacobi was born on the 19th February 1882 at 36 Murray Buildings, Vauxhall. He was thirty two years old when he died at Horton Asylum on the 18th October 1914. Frank had been a patient there for just over two years and is buried in the Horton Estate Cemetery in plot 1927b.}

^{Frank’s parents and siblings}

^{Frank was the son of John Samuel Jacobi and Elizabeth Sarah (née Doody). He was a middle child with eight siblings. John and Elizabeth had married on 15th October 1871 at Clement Danes Church in Westminster. John Jacobi was working as a Cooper.}

^{Coopers were a vital part of the economy, as almost everything was stored in wooden barrels, casks or other containers until the early 1900s. This was the first marriage for John and Elizabeth and both gave their age as twenty. Elizabeth was from a Catholic family but their marriage was at the Parish Church of St Clement Danes which was Church of England. Their first baby John Joseph was born in 1873 in Deptford, where Elizabeth herself was originally born and possibly still had relatives. All the other children were born around the Lambeth area where the couple settled. In 1881 the family were living at Murray Buildings in Lambeth and the family was increasing in size. All nine children reached adulthood, a remarkable achievement for the time. Frank, the subject of this story attended the Johanna Street School in Lambeth leaving at the age of 13. He reached the 5th standard. The expected standard on leaving school was Standard 6, which roughly equates to the education of an eight year old today. Many children did not reach that expected standard. The area was deprived.}

^{The 1890s}

^{In 1891 the family were living at nearby 13 Tower Street and Frank’s father John was still working as a Cooper. It appears there was some stability in the family, They avoided the workhouse and stayed in their small rented accommodations for long periods. Life couldn’t have been easy though, as John was said to have remained intemperate since he was 19 years of age. The last and ninth child of John and Elizabeth was Alfred born on 7th February 1893. Alfred went on to become a police constable and serve many years in the Metropolitan Police. It seems like the Jacobi family was an average family.}

^{Elizabeth must have been devastated when her husband John died of pneumonia in 1899, he was just 47 and they still had young children. Some of the older children were already working and likely contributing to the family’s income. Frank was 17. Somehow they managed.}

^Adulthood

^{In 1901 the family were living at 2 Maxwell Terrace in Lambeth. They rented two rooms but were now sharing the property with over 40 other people. Frank was not with the family and his whereabouts are unknown. On admission to Horton Asylum many years later Frank’s mother Elizabeth stated that Frank never did any regular work after leaving school and just wandered around.}

^{On the 1911 census Frank was back living with his mother at 53 Elliots Row in Southwark. They were sharing a house with Frank’s sister Ada and her family. Frank gives his occupation as Commission Agent but there is no employer mentioned.}

^{Mental illness in the family}

^{Elizabeth was very familiar with mental illness as two of her brothers had died in asylums. John Doody had died in Hanwell Asylum having been there for a few years. Another brother Thomas, who Elizabeth was quite close to (she was godmother to his daughter) had been admitted to Horton Asylum. He would have been one of their first patients. Thomas died on 15th April 1902 and was also buried at the Horton Estate Cemetery.}

^{With many medical or psychological problems of the day, there would not be any recognition or treatment until there was a crisis. This is likely what happened to Frank.}

^{Admission to Horton and death}

^{He was admitted to St George’s Workhouse in Lambeth on 23rd October 1912 as he was unable to look after himself, unsteady on his feet, incoherent and distressed. Frank was transferred to Horton Asylum just six days later, and remained there for nearly two years until he died on 18th October 1914. The cause of his death was General Paralysis of the Insane, which he had for many years, likely a complication of syphilis that he contracted at the age of 17. As his condition deteriorated Horton would have offered him the care and protection he needed.}

^{It is unlikely Frank realized he was in the same asylum as his uncle had been in years before, as Frank’s mother had thought her brother had died in the nearby Banstead Asylum. Contact after admission was not that common in the early days of the asylums. We do not know if the family ever visited.}

^{Frank’s mother Elizabeth continued living with her daughter Ada and her family in the house at Elliots Row. Elizabeth Jacobi died in 1943 at the age of 90 years.}

^{Frank will be remembered.}